IRAN UPS EXPORTS TO QATAR BY 5-FOLDS

TEHRAN, Iran has exported 216.585 tons of goods worth $47.666 million to Qatar during the first two months of the current Iranian year (March 21, 2018-May 21, 2018), showing a considerable growth in terms of value, a customs report said.

“Iran’s export to Qatar increased five-fold times as compared with last year’s corresponding period,” the latest statistics of Iran’s Customs Administration on foreign trade showed.

It noted that the amount of Iran’s exports to Qatar during the first two months of the current year compared to the same period last year had been increased by 64 percent and 435 percent in terms of weight and value, respectively.

In relevant remarks in January 2018, Senior Advisor to the Iranian Parliament Speaker Hossein Amir Abdollahian and Qatari Ambassador to Tehran Ali bin Hamad Al Sulaiti in a meeting underlined the need to broaden bilateral relations in different fields.

During the meeting in the Iranian capital, Amir Abdollahian and Al Sulaiti explored avenues for bolstering and reinvigorating mutual cooperation, specially in the parliamentary field.

Amir Abdollahian pointed to the significance Iran attaches to the relations with Qatar, and underlined the necessity to expand relations between the two countries.

The Qatari ambassador, for his part, underlined the positive role Tehran can play in establishing peace, security and stability in the region, as well as in fight against terrorism.

He also said that boosting relations between Tehran-Doha is of great importance to both countries.

The two sides also exchanged views on regional developments.

In relevant remarks in late November 2017, a senior official announced that Tehran had received a proposal from Doha to boost the volume of trade between the two countries.

“The current level of annual trade between Iran and Qatar stood at below $1 billion; Doha had informed Tehran through Qatari Economy Minister Ahmed bin Jassim al-Thani about a proposal to increase this to as high as $5 billion per year,” Iranian Minister of Industry, Mines and Trade Mohammad Shariatmadari said.

The Iranian minister said Qatar was eager to expand ties with the Islamic Republic in all areas as a result of the current conditions that the Saudi-led blockade against it had created.

“Qatar possesses adequate infrastructures that could help Iran expand its economic ties with the international community,” Shariatmadari said.

He further said Iran and Qatar had been able to expand the level of their trade relations by 120 percent over the past months, expressing hope that this would increase further in the future.

Al Thani, for his part, said Iran had a crucial role over the shipments of goods from other countries, including Turkey and Azerbaijan to Qatar since the Saudi-led blockade against Doha became effective.

He also expressed satisfaction over a rise in exports of Iranian products to Qatar particularly food items and construction materials over the past months.

Saudi Arabia and its allies, including the UAE, Bahrain and Egypt severed ties with Qatar in early June over charges that it supports terrorism. They have accordingly imposed a land, sea and air blockade against Qatar thus leaving only a sea and air corridor open with Iran.

This created a rise in Iran’s exports � particularly fruits and vegetables � to Qatar over the past months. Iran has also become a corridor for exports of other countries to the blockaded Persian Gulf state.